MOURNERS
Tuesday – July 16, 2019, Tamuz 13, 5779
Greetings precious brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus and welcome back to this insightful and powerful Bible Study of the Book of John. Our God, the only Living God, is so good to us, giving us explicit insights into the Kingdom of God of which we are citizens on assignment in the earth. If you are reading this on Facebook please take a moment and share these teaching with your friends with the “share” button or even “tag” your friends making it more certain they will see this and perhaps value it enough to read. There is nothing more powerful or valuable than the Word of God, period. The featured pictures this week will be of various scenes here in Maine (covered bridge in Newry) and of course Friday will feature yours truly and his newly minted bride. Now, let’s delve into our Bible Study by first reading our primary Bible text.
John 11:16-22 (KJV)
16 Then said Thomas, which is called Didymus, unto his fellowdisciples, Let us also go, that we may die with him.
17 Then when Jesus came, he found that he had lain in the grave four days already.
18 Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem, about fifteen furlongs off:
19 And many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother.
20 Then Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went and met him: but Mary sat still in the house.
21 Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.
22 But I know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee.
The mourners have arrived from Jerusalem to comfort Martha and Mary in the death of their brother Lazarus. There is a legitimate place for mourning and grieving however it is to be a very temporary place as the mourning or grieving person presses forward into the new and temporary reality of their lives. It strikes me that the teachings of the Church mirror the world with regard to grieving. As an aside the same is true of finding a help-meet and being married. I have firsthand experience in both areas recently. These things will have to wait for another time but I know the Lord will have me teach on these issues as well as the grieving and other trauma that occurs with divorce. Being carefully attuned to the still small voice of the Holy Spirit is essential in all three circumstances. Now, back to the account of Lazarus.
Somehow Martha got wind of the fact that Jesus was on His way (no Facebook, cell phone, or Instagram). It would seem that Jesus is not in a hurry even now and that others are going to the side of Martha and Mary much more rapidly. It is not hard to imagine that He is teaching and ministering (healing the sick and freeing the captives) all along the way which means things are taking longer for His entourage. As we meditate on our text, we find that Martha is out and about but Mary is sitting at home. This death seemingly is a death blow, at least temporarily to Mary’s faith. As we will see in the next chapter, she recovers remarkably and ends very strong. In verse twenty-one it would seem that Martha has meet the Lord on the road coming into Bethany on His way to the grave site. She is giving Jesus the ‘what for’ saying that if He had come sooner her brother Lazarus would not have died. We know that is not true, but we can identify with her frustration. The Lord does not react to this criticism which points out that neither are we required to respond to every criticism. In fact, we and the person leveling the criticism will be best served by our silence.
To Martha’s credit she quickly follows her criticism with a strong faith statement. This is absolutely critical to anything that is to follow concerning Lazarus.
John 11:22 (KJV)
22 But I know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee.
Let me take a moment now and remind us all of how critical, how essential, our faith statements are in obtaining the desired result. I am not talking about a faith statement mixed with unbelief but belief unmixed. Let’s look at Jairus and his faith statement that resulted in his little daughter being raised from the dead just as this faith statement will result in Lazarus being raised from the dead.
Mark 5:22-23 (KJV)
22 And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet,
23 And besought him greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live. (Bold added by Dr. Wood)
In spite of many opportunities to change his confession of faith, Jairus did not say another word until his daughter was raised from the dead. How good are we at this?
Until our next publication, as a Bible Teacher and Prophetic Voice I speak this blessing over each and every one of you, receive it by faith in Jesus name!
Numbers 6:24-26 (AMP)
24 The Lord bless you and watch, guard, and keep you;
25 The Lord make His face to shine upon and enlighten you and be gracious (kind, merciful, and giving favor) to you;
26 The Lord lift up His [approving] countenance upon you and give you peace (tranquility of heart and life continually).
By: Dr. David Wood, Author, Bible Teacher, and Prophetic Voice
PRAYERS AND QUESTIONS – please, anytime you have an issue that you want me, this ministry to pray for you, a person you love or a situation contact me. Accordingly, if you should have a question about the Bible, please do not hesitate to ask it.
PARTNERSHIP AND GIVING – Those of you who are not Partners of this Ministry and you find this ministry to be of value to you and perhaps others with whom you share it, we ask you to consider becoming Partners. A Partner is one who prays for the Ministry on a regular basis and contributes to the Ministry on a regular basis (monthly, quarterly, annually). Thank you and may the Lord be pleased with your decision.
CONTACT E-MAIL: pastordavidwood@gmail.com
BLOG: https://awakeariseandtriumphministries.org
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/awakearisetriumphministries
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/PastorDavidWood
MAILING ADDRESS: 10 Village Green Circle, Oakland, Maine 04963
MY BOOKS: https://awakeariseandtriumphministries.org/shop/
